Chapter 104 - 75: No Time Like the Present
After the initial shock, Gu Ming slowly leaned back in his chair, feeling his heart still pounding wildly.
He soon realized that he had, it seemed, unintentionally rendered an immense service to Yannan University.
This contribution was probably greater than all his teaching and research achievements combined since he had returned to the country and joined Yannan University!
After all, he was the one who had stood before Principal Chang Kai. He’d made the snap decision, using the most exaggerated terms to strongly recommend that the university keep Chen Lin at all costs.
At the time, his words were certainly driven by his shock at Chen Lin’s performance and his eagerness to nurture talent, but there was also an element of "taking a gamble."
’Looking at it now, how was that even a gamble? This was like hitting the jackpot!’
’No, it was like discovering an unmined gold mountain!’
’The things I said back then weren’t the least bit exaggerated; in fact, they even seem a bit conservative now.’
’Gauss? Euler?’
’Did those giants of mathematical history possess such terrifying breadth and depth of knowledge when they were twenty?’
Gu Ming couldn’t say for sure.
But he could now be one hundred percent certain of one thing—with the terrifying talent Chen Lin had displayed, aiming for the Fields Medal was by no means a distant dream, but a completely achievable goal!
At this thought, a heartfelt admiration suddenly welled up in Gu Ming, but this admiration was for Academician Liang Tianshi, who was far away in the Imperial Capital.
’We both met him for the first time, but just how sharp were Elder Liang’s eyes to see through Chen Lin’s seemingly ordinary exterior and perceive the supreme talent hidden within in a single glance?’
’He even expressed his hope that Chen Lin would aim for the Fields Medal right then and there.’
’When I heard about it at the time, I just thought it was a kind wish from a senior to a brilliant junior.’
’Looking back now, it was also backed by a confidence in his own judgment.’
That kind of insight was truly something Gu Ming couldn’t hope to match.
Then, a small flicker of confusion arose in Gu Ming’s mind.
’Since Chen Lin has already mastered mathematics to the point where he can crush the doctoral qualifying exam through self-study, then by all rights, he should be a pure scholar dedicated to the pursuit of truth.’
’So why is he so fixated on starting a business to make money right after graduation?’
Gu Ming frowned and thought for a long time but couldn’t figure it out.
In the end, he could only attribute this unusual behavior to the unique way of thinking that geniuses have, which ordinary people cannot comprehend.
"Forget it, I’m not going to think about it anymore."
Gu Ming chuckled self-deprecatingly and shook his head.
’Geniuses, after all, are bound to have some unconventional ideas.’
’In any case, Chen Lin has already promised Principal Chang that he will participate in the university’s research projects as his energy allows.’
’That’s good enough.’
...
...
Chen Lin, of course, had no idea what a storm the three exam papers he had casually completed had stirred up in Professor Gu Ming’s heart.
He left the office building, followed the familiar path to the subway station at the university entrance, and swiped his card to enter.
A little over half an hour later, when the subway came to a smooth stop at Liu Zhuang Station, he followed the crowd out of the car and returned to the residential complex he had just started to get familiar with.
Chen Lin checked his phone. It was already past 5:30.
After the intense mental exertion, his body was lodging its most honest protest—his stomach was beginning to feel the faint pangs of hunger.
He didn’t rush home. Instead, he wandered around the neighborhood and soon found a small, unassuming restaurant with a lively, homey feel in an alley fronting the street.
"Boss, one order of twice-cooked pork over rice!"
"Coming right up!"
Accompanied by the sizzle of stir-frying and an enticing aroma from the kitchen, twenty minutes later, Chen Lin looked at the empty bowl he had wiped clean and contentedly rubbed his slightly bulging stomach.
’Let’s see,’ he thought, ’I’ve already used up the three-hour time limit for "Little Mathematician" today, so doing any research is definitely out of the question.’
’Perfect timing. I was already planning to find a chance to talk to Sun Yu and poach him for my future company.’
’No time like the present. Today it is.’
At this thought, he immediately pulled out his phone, opened WeChat, and sent a message to Sun Yu.
[Sun, are you home right now? I just finished dinner outside and was thinking of stopping by your place to chat about something.]
This time, Sun Yu didn’t reply instantly.
Chen Lin wasn’t in a hurry; mainly because it wouldn’t do any good.
Sun Yu had only told him that he lived in Building 7, but hadn’t mentioned the specific apartment number.
’I can’t just go knocking on every door on every floor, can I?’
He simply put his phone away and started strolling slowly toward Building 7, pulling up the Enki Love forum on his phone to browse some posts and kill time.
He had just scrolled to a post whose title made him chuckle—"My wife is insane, she’s teaching my one-and-a-half-year-old son to swear."
Chen Lin clicked into the post, shaking his head as he read. His fingers flew across the screen as he quickly typed a line in the reply box.
"He’ll straighten up once he gets to kindergarten and gets ostracized and beaten up by the other kids."
Just as he finished replying, a notification popped up on his phone. It was Sun Yu’s reply on WeChat.
Sun Yu: [Welcome, welcome! I was in the shower and didn’t see your message. Just come on over. I’m in Building 7, apartment 501. Just ring the doorbell downstairs.]
Chen Lin put his phone away and quickened his pace.
「Three minutes later.」
"Welcome, welcome!"
Sun Yu, dressed in loungewear with his hair still slightly damp, enthusiastically welcomed Chen Lin inside.
"Sorry about this, Chen Lin, I don’t have any guest slippers. You can just come in with your shoes on."
"It’s fine," Chen Lin said, but still slipped his shoes off in the entryway and walked in wearing just his socks.
Sun Yu took a bottle of mineral water from the fridge and handed it to him, a hint of apology on his face. "I just moved in a month ago, so the place is a mess. I haven’t bought any tea or anything either, so please bear with me."
Chen Lin wasn’t bothered by any of this. He didn’t particularly like tea anyway. He twisted the cap off, took a sip, and smiled. "Sun, you’re being too polite."
While making small talk with Sun Yu, he discreetly sized up the room.
Compared to his own "finely decorated model home," Sun Yu’s place had a much more lived-in feel.
Or rather, it was much more worn.
The sofa in the living room was an old-fashioned leather one, with noticeable wear and cracks on the armrests. The coffee table was glass, and the TV stand was a dark brown style popular over a decade ago. Everything looked like old furniture left behind by the landlord.
Chen Lin didn’t say anything, but his favorable impression of Sun Yu quietly grew a little stronger.
President Peng had given him full authority over matters here in Jinmen. Logically, he could have easily gotten some new furniture for himself while furnishing Chen Lin’s place, since the company would reimburse it all anyway.
But in the end, Sun Yu had arranged Chen Lin’s apartment perfectly, making sure everything was brand new, while his own place hadn’t seen any of those benefits.
’This shows that Sun Yu, as a person, has good character at the very least. He’s very down-to-earth.’
’If someone like that were my employee, I could rest a lot easier.’
The two of them sat down on the sofa. Chen Lin didn’t beat around the bush. He took a sip of water to wet his throat and got straight to the point.
"Sun, I came to see you today because I wanted to talk to you about something."
"I’m preparing to start a new company, and I wanted to ask if you’d be interested in coming to help me?"
Sun Yu was clearly stunned. The smile on his face froze, and for a moment, he didn’t know what to say.
Seeing his bewildered expression, Chen Lin smiled and softened his tone. "Don’t be nervous, and don’t feel pressured. If you don’t want to come, that’s fine too. It definitely won’t affect your current job. We’ll continue to cooperate just as we have been."